2016 Grant Recipients

The Enviva Forest Conservation Fund, established by Enviva Holdings, LP (“Enviva”) and administered by the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, is awarding $500,000 in 2016 to preservation and conservation programs that span more than 2,000 acres of environmentally sensitive bottomland and wetland forests in North Carolina and Virginia.

The Nature Conservancy North Carolina Chapter

Roanoke River Preserve

The Enviva Forest Conservation Fund’s grant will help ensure Virginia’s forests continue to harbor wildlife, support recreation and forestry, and clean the air we breathe and the water we drink. The Nature Conservancy is pleased by Enviva’s commitment to conserve sensitive areas that help maintain the health, condition and sustainability of floodplain forests in southeast Virginia.

“The Nature Conservancy’s Roanoke River Project began in 1982 to help conserve important forested wetlands in the Coastal Plain of North Carolina and Virginia. Since then, we and our partners have helped protect more than 94,000 acres of conservation land in the Lower Roanoke River. The Conservancy engages river communities to promote sustainable and compatible uses in this area, such as publicly accessible camping platforms. Support from the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund will help the Conservancy add important new lands to the Roanoke River Project with large expanses of cypress-tupelo swamps and stands of Atlantic white cedar.”

Triangle Land Conservancy, Raleigh, N.C.

Beaverdam Lake Easement

The Enviva Forest Conservation Fund is providing $100,000 to the Triangle Land Conservancy to help finance purchase of a permanent conservation easement on 127 acres of bottomland hardwood forest, uplands, and lake area adjacent to Neuse River Conservation Lands in Wake County, North Carolina. The property is a priority for the Neuse River Corridor Plan and the Capital Area Greenway. The lake and wetlands on the property help filter water flowing into the Neuse River, the drinking water source for the Town of Clayton and Johnston County.

“Conserving forests in the Raleigh area is important. In doing so, we will maintain open space, protect wildlife habitats and filter the region’s drinking water. With the generous support of the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund, Triangle Land Conservancy will be able to permanently protect priority lands identified for both the Neuse River Corridor Plan and the Capital Area Greenway Plan. We are excited by the opportunity to leverage our efforts and resources with support from the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund to further protect forested ecosystems in the Raleigh area, one of the fastest growing regions in the South.”

Sandy Sweitzer, Executive Director, Triangle Land Conservancy

Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation

Lower Nottoway River Project

The Enviva Forest Conservation Fund is providing $175,000 to the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation for acquisition of 385 acres of hardwood bottomland, cypress-tupelo swamps, and 2.6 miles of frontage along the State Scenic Nottoway River in Southampton County, Virginia. This land is near existing Department of Conservation and Recreation projects and will augment protection of the existing Cypress Bridge Natural Area Preserve. Conserving this land will also protect the State Scenic Nottoway River, provide water quality enhancement and flood storage capacity, and support the myriad of threatened and endangered flora and fauna that call this river home.

“In advancing our mission to conserve the Commonwealth’s unique natural and cultural resources, we’ve successfully protected 63 Natural Area Preserves (NAP) totaling nearly 56,000 acres across the state. Our partnership with the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund will allow us to conserve another key property along the State Scenic Nottoway River, protecting more ecologic and scenic resources, and helping to build a legacy for future generations in southeast Virginia.”

The Nature Conservancy Virginia Chapter

Meherrin River Easement

The Enviva Forest Conservation Fund is providing $30,000 to The Nature Conservancy, Virginia Chapter, to finance a conservation easement donation of a 408-acre floodplain tract along the Meherrin River, Southampton County, Virginia. This project blends working forest uses with limited harvest designations to maintain health and condition of floodplain forest communities.

“The Enviva Forest Conservation Fund’s grant will help ensure Virginia’s forests continue to harbor wildlife, support recreation and forestry, and clean the air we breathe and the water we drink. The Nature Conservancy is pleased by Enviva’s commitment to conserve sensitive areas that help maintain the health, condition and sustainability of floodplain forests in southeast Virginia.”

“The coastal forests of Virginia are a precious natural resource, and the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund will play an important role in protecting and conserving them. Programs such as the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund help families and other landowners keep these forests as forests for generations to come. Both our environment and our communities benefit when private industry develops and supports these types of conservation efforts.”

The Honorable Terry McAuliffe, Governor of Virginia

“Enviva is one of the fastest-growing companies in the wood pellet industry. It turns byproducts of sawtimber harvests into renewable fuel that is in great demand around the world. By creating this Forest Conservation Fund, Enviva is ensuring that North Carolina’s bottomland forests will be sustained and protected for generations to come.”

The Honorable Pat McCrory, Governor, State of North Carolina

“Ensuring that working forests are sound habitats for a wide range of bird species includes maintaining diversity within individual forest stands and at the landscape level. Enviva’s plan to identify and protect specific wetland forest types, such as Atlantic White Cedar, and to continue to enhance management of working forests, is a great step toward this goal for the Coastal Plain of Virginia and North Carolina.”

George Fenwick, Ph.D., President, American Bird Conservancy

“I applaud the Endowment and Enviva for this innovative and positive agreement to ensure conservation and management of our critical forested wetland habitats. This agreement is the model of how corporate America can and should work to truly define sustainability for the future. Enviva’s commitment to protect diminishing hardwoods, cedars, pocosins and bays will help ensure a healthy future for both important habitats and forest product supply.”

“Increasingly, conservation successes will be defined by the convergence of business and the environment. The partnership of the U. S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities and Enviva is a great example of how the innovation of business can accelerate the achievement of conservation on the ground. The enhanced management of family-owned forests, the permanent protection of the most sensitive areas, and the clear signal that healthy markets for forest products translates into forests being kept as forests rather than being converted to shopping centers, all are great outcomes of this strong partnership.”

Larry Selzer , President and CEO, The Conservation Fund

“I commend Enviva for their new initiative to conserve bottomland hardwood forests in North Carolina. This project is a great example of private enterprise leading conservation efforts across our state.”

The Honorable David Rouzer, U.S. House of Representatives, 7th District of North Carolina

“The hardwood forests of the Southeast have been actively harvested for centuries. Unfortunately, all-too-often harvesting was done by ‘tak’n the best and leav’n the rest’. What’s often needed to restore those forest to resiliency and to help keep the forests healthy and productive are markets for the low-value trees left behind. The Enviva/Endowment plan is to harvest and allow for natural regeneration on operable sites while protecting stands on fragile soils in order to accomplish both economic and ecological objectives.”

Dr. Robert Kellison , Professor Emeritus of Hardwood Silviculture, North Carolina State University

“The raw materials that supply the wide range of forest products – from paper to lumber and more – are heavily dependent upon stewardship by our nation’s family forest owners. Just paying the annual taxes, insurance and maintenance on those lands can be a challenge. To have a for-profit corporation commit to helping fund long-term forest conservation efforts to help these landowners defray part of these costs and keep their forests as forests benefits us all.”

Tom Martin, President and CEO, American Forest Foundation

“An enduring commitment to sustainable forest management and a diversity of strong markets for wood products helped forest owners and managers increase the volume of growing trees in our country by 50 percent since the 1950s. Those forests provide clean air and water, wildlife habitat, recreation opportunities and economic benefits that improve the quality of life of millions of Americans. Conservation efforts are central to the business of sustainable forestry, helping to protect unique places and sensitive areas essential to the overall health and vitality of our forests. We applaud Enviva’s commitment to sustainable forestry and the people who make it possible.”

Dave Tenny, President and CEO, National Alliance of Forest Owners

“Our agency believes in strong forest markets and the simultaneous conservation of declining forest types. We look forward to working closely with the partners to achieve effective landowner outreach, timely reforestation and active management that will strengthen forest health.”

Matching-Fund Grants

The Enviva Forest Conservation Fund, administered by the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, supports nonprofit organizations to protect ecologically sensitive areas and conserve working forests.